ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, PAK-W vs SL-W: Pakistan beat Sri Lanka by 31 runs

Sharjah: Pakistan produced a fine all-round display to beat Sri Lanka inside of the 2nd match of the ICC Women folk’s T20 World Cup and start up their campaign on a winning note at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium here on Thursday. Fatima Sana’s side defied the shape book to beat the Asian Cup Champions by 31 runs, posting 116 inside of the first innings after which bowling superbly to confine Sri Lanka to 85/9.

Pakistan’s captain Sana made the vitally important early leap forward to remove Sri Lanka opener Chamari Athapathu and gives hope that her side may maybe successfully defend a comparatively modest first-innings total. And her fellow bowlers kept things impressively tight, denying Sri Lanka boundaries and picking up frequent wickets because the scoring rate soared.

Most effective opener Vishmi Gunaratne (20 from 34) and Nilakshika Silva (22 from 25) reached double figures as Sri Lanka’s chase petered out, finishing on 85/9, still 31 runs shy of their target. It became a game wherein the ball largely dominated the bat, with Sri Lanka’s bowlers also keeping Pakistan in check inside of the first innings, taking frequent wickets to confine a batting lineup that proved fluid, with big-hitting skipper Sana top-scoring with 30 from 20 balls down the order – runs that proved match-winning inside of the final word shake-up.

Three bowlers stood out, with Athapaththu almost bagging a hat-trick and finishing with figures of three/18, with Udeshika Prabodhani and Sugandika Kumari also taking three wickets – three/19 and three/20 respectively. But they were in the pinnacle outshone on the day by Pakistan’s attack.

Pakistan’s bowling effort got off to a demoralising start when Diana Baig pulled up after sending down the very first ball of the innings and became forced to depart the field with what gave the look of a significant injury. But that became where the frustration ended for Pakistan, as they turned in a fine display.

After Sana had picked up the vitally important scalp of Athapaththu, Omaima Sohail joined in with two big wickets, cleaning up both Harshitha Samarawickrama (7 from 10) and Hasini Perera (eight from 10) to leave Sri Lanka in big trouble on 35/three with the specified rate climbing. And the spinners proved extremely demanding for Sri Lanka to get away because the chase fizzled out under the lights. Sadia Iqbal returned an appropriate figures with three/17, while Nashra Sandhu went for two/15 from her four overs, as Pakistan’s slow bowlers tied Sri Lanka in knots.

Earlier, Pakistan’s new captain Fatima Sana enjoyed an initial success in her first match to blame for the team at a significant tournament, winning the toss and opting to bat first. But Sri Lanka’s bowlers kept Pakistan in check inside of the first innings, taking frequent wickets to confine a batting order that proved fluid.

It became a strong start for the Asia Cup champions, who removed both openers during the impressive Sugandika Kumari, who had both Gull Feroza (2 from four) and Muneeba Ali (Eleven from 14) caught at the back of to confine Pakistan inside of the powerplay. A middle-order recovery became unable to have a big impact as Chamari Athapaththu removed Sidra Amin (12 from 10) prior to Omaima Sohail (18 from 19) and Nida Dar (23 from 22) were pushed aside by Kavisha Dilhari and Udeshika Prabodhani respectively.

Pakistan’s batting strategy became clear to look as captain Fatima Sana and Aliya Riaz were pushed down the order, revealing their status as designated ‘finishers’, coming in at seven and eight respectively, two places lower than first and foremost carded. But the prospect of a late flurry became impacted by Athapaththu’s double strike, as she removed Tuba Hassan and Riaz off consecutive deliveries, narrowly missing out on a hat-trick as she fizzed a gem past the surface edge of Diana Baig.

Wickets continued to tumble, but Pakistan skipper Sana did take care of to lift her side to a 3-figure total, slamming 30 runs off just 20 balls as she produced a sparkling cameo that arrange a match-winning total of 116, with the final word wicket falling to the last ball of the 20 overs.